Never Underestimate Licensed Soundtracks

There have been a lot of game music blogs lately (as there always are); even I have chimed in with a blog dedicated to menu music. But today I want to turn the attention over to a whole different beast: licensed soundtracks.

I know most, if not all of you say licensed soundtracks can't stand up to original soundtracks, and I agree. BUT, that in no way means there can't be awesome licensed sountracks out there. Sure, you get mediocre licensed soundtracks that add little to nothing to a game, but those are mostly in sports games. Here -- in no particular order -- are some of my favorite licensed soundtracks:

All Tony Hawk Games

Goldfinger? Check. Black Sabbath? Check. Public Enemy? Check. Queens of the Stone Age? Check. Hell... Busdriver? Sure, why not. Tony Hawk games have had it all. Each game (at least up until Project 8) has offered a great soundtrack, and collectively they offer one of the best compilations around. I love how the games have given you some popular choices, but also some real underground stuff; it was a great way for me to expand my horizons and listen to a much wider variety of music. I could list a ton of my favorites, but to keep it short, here's just one sample from each game up through Underground 2:

This one could be my favorite. It's another game that featured very obscure artists, another great opportunity to check out different artists from many different styles. It's a soundtrack that absolutely added to the whole experience of the game. It's also the reason the game was delayed past its original launch date, but now that simply makes for an interesting story. Here are some of my favorites:

Earlier I said that sports game soundtracks often miss the mark, but FIFA is an exception. More relatively unknown bands here (Gorillaz being an exception), but as you may have figured out, that's usually not a bad thing. So let's just get into a few favorites: